Police board still asking for 10% cut, but allows for it to be spread over two years

The civilian board that oversees the Toronto Police Service is insisting the force slash its budget by 10%, but it is allowing Chief Bill Blair to present options that would spread the cutbacks over two years.

It’s the latest act in a drama over police spending that marks the first time the police services board has formally endorsed Mayor Rob Ford’s spending cut edict.

In doing so, it rejected Chief Blair’s budget request of $944-million, a 1.5% increase over this year.

The Chief says to hit the 10% target in 2012, the force would have to cut 650 officers, a move he cannot “in good conscience” recommend because of its impact on public safety. With what looked like a forced smile, he agreed to lay out the options for the board’s consideration next Thursday.

Board chairman Alok Mukherjee touted the direction as a turning point in the slog to rein in police costs, even though it buys the police more time, when other departments are expected to meet the 10% target in 2012.

Michael Thompson, vice chairman of the board and a vocal critic of the Chief, opposed giving the police any wiggle room. The two have verbally sparred after the city councillor suggested that the Chief should be replaced if he can’t find the savings.

“The cost of policing is out of control,” Mr. Thompson told the board, noting that other jurisdictions have had to lay off officers because of financial constraints. “I want to see us achieve those reductions in 2012. There are more things to be done and we have some time.”

The City of Toronto is in the midst of a gruelling budget cycle to fill a funding gap anywhere from $475-million to $750-million wide.

The police budget has garnered particular attention because of its size, and escalation: since 2004, it has grown by $267-million. Most of that, or 71%, is due to salary increases.

About 85% of the police budget is spent on salaries and benefits. The board signed an 11.5% wage increase over four years, which will add about $23-million to the bottom line in 2012. To cut costs, the Chief has proposed a hiring freeze for the second year in a row, trimmed senior management by 10%, cut premium pay, plus other measures but that only gets the force about one third of the way to its target. The hiring freeze would result in about 240 fewer officers by the end of 2012. There are about 5,600 uniformed police and more than 2,000 civilian staff. Mr. Mukherjee suggested the board consider offering buyouts to 400 officers, a move opposed to by the Chief, who estimated it would cost about $47-million.

Police bureaucrats say legislative requirements make it difficult to reduce staff in time for the 2012 budget, but if the board is serious about hitting its target, then cutting jobs may still be on the table. It won’t get much easier in 2013 when salaries go up again. Much of the discussion on Wednesday revolved around what defines “adequate and effective policing,” which Chief Blair says is at risk if the board follows through on the cuts. The answer was not entirely clear because, as Mr. Mukherjee put it, there are no quantifiable standards. He is pushing the force to look at cheaper ways to deliver the same service.

Following the decision, reporters asked Mr. Mukherjee what happens if the Chief refuses to comply with the board’s budget request. He would not speculate. “Ideally we would like to see this done in one year, but the board also recognizes the Chief may have some very practical reasons why he can come and say it’s not doable in one year,” he said. “The main fact is that the board has today unanimously said a 10% reduction, and we want to reverse the trend of police costs.”